Walmart expands fast delivery with Subway meals across U.S. stores

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Walmart expands fast delivery

Highlights

Walmart will expand fast delivery of Subway meals to about 1,400 U.S. stores by late summer, building on a successful multi-state pilot.
Store-fulfilled delivery sales at Walmart have more than doubled in two years, with executives citing 30-minute delivery as the retailer's fastest-growing service.
Walmart's expansion targets convenience-seeking and higher-income customers as its traditional lower-income base reduces spending amid a divided U.S. economy.

Subway rollout targets late summer expansion

As reported by Reuters, Walmart said on Thursday that it plans to expand the fast-delivery service for Subway, already live in a few states, to about 1,400 stores by late summer.

Subway is Walmart's largest in-store restaurant tenant, and the company says the initiative may be the start of a wider program. Tracy Poulliot, Walmart's executive vice president of U.S. e-commerce and marketing, says Subway is a starting point and that Walmart wants any in-tenant location for customers to have delivery via express.

Subway has operated inside Walmart supercenters since 2004. Other fast-food chains with a presence at Walmart locations include Taco Bell, McDonald's and Wendy's, along with regional operators such as Auntie Anne's.

Delivery competition and consumer shifts shape strategy

Walmart remains in intense competition with Amazon for delivery share and is using its network of more than 4,600 stores to fulfill online orders. Earlier this year, it expanded its 30-minute delivery option for groceries and other items to about 33 cities.

Company executives said in May that the 30-minute option is its fastest-growing offering as shoppers increasingly favor convenience. Walmart CFO John David Rainey told Wall Street analysts in May that sales using store-fulfilled delivery have more than doubled over the past two years.

The expansion also comes as the U.S. economy becomes more divided, with lower-income households, long a core Walmart customer base, pulling back on spending. That backdrop is pushing the retailer to strengthen services that appeal to convenience-focused and more affluent shoppers.

Our earlier coverage of Walmart’s AI and automation rollout explained how the retailer is expanding technology across stores and warehouses to speed up fulfillment and cut shipping costs, even as shareholders voted down a request for more disclosure on worker well-being impacts. We also noted that Walmart tied these investments directly to its battle with Amazon for e-commerce growth, alongside a broader focus on faster delivery performance.

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